The Rivals
by Siancore
Summary: Written for RichonneFics' Richonne Rom Com Challenge: The Rivals - They say there is a thin line between love and hate. Which one of these frenemies will be the first to cross the line to love? Richonne High School AU
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Written for RichonneFics' Richonne Rom Com Challenge

 ** _The Rivals-_** They say there is a thin line between love and hate. Which one of these frenemies will be the first to cross the line to love?

Got a lot of inspiration from seeing Andy wearing the Melting Passes football jersey at NYCC. AU high school Richonne. I've decided not to post it where I post my other challenge offerings, namely because I will consider writing more, if readers respond well to it.

* * *

 _Thursday_

The afternoon sun shone brightly as Michonne Harris and Sasha Williams dropped their gym bags to the ground and walked out onto the soccer pitch. It was a small area at the back of their school, and it was kept in good condition. Its condition was at an excellent standard, not only because the groundskeeper was diligent, but because it did not get frequent use outside of what it was meant for. The basketball and football arenas were often used for other events, but the soccer field was not.

There were many sports teams at Woodbury Academy; the girls' and boys' soccer teams were two among the many. Though, each were at differing levels when it came to being winners. The Woodbury Tigers, the boys' team, had a poor track record with victories, whereas the girls' team, The Falcons, were state champions.

Michonne was the new striker for The Falcons; she had a keen eye, great aim, and rarely missed a shot. She was fast, and always able to outrun the opposing team's defenders. Her team mates nicknamed her 'The Samurai' because she cut so many opposition players down. Sasha played as the right winger, another attacking position that worked closely with Michonne's; it is how both girls became fast friends.

While their season had only just begun, Michonne and Sasha wanted to get some extra training sessions in while they had spare time. They had been meeting every day after school for a few weeks now. They would run laps together and then do some goal-kicking drills. It was also a good chance for them to hang out, since Michonne was still relatively new to town.

The girls started their warm-up exercises when they heard the sound of someone wolf-whistling not too far away. They searched the immediate area, and then scoffed in disgust when they saw a group of players from the Tigers wearing their training gear and kicking a few balls to each other. They were headed in the girls' direction.

"Great," said Michonne, as she continued to stretch. "Ten bucks says they try to tell us to leave."

"Ten bucks says Shane Walsh tries to sexually harass us," Sasha replied, before jumping up and down on the spot.

"Hello, girls," Shane, The Tigers' goal keeper, said as he approached; the other boys stood behind him. "While I would _love_ to watch while you finish off all o' that stretching and bending, I hope y'all know we've got training here right now."

"Okay," said Michonne. "What does that have to do with us?"

"We're gonna need you girls to move your sweet little asses off our pitch," he said. "That's what."

"Your pitch?" asked Sasha, folding her arms over her chest. "We've got just as much right to train here as you do."

"In fact," said Michonne. "We were here first, so maybe you and your _so-called team_ should take _your_ little asses off _our_ pitch."

"Come on now," said Rick Grimes, The Tigers' defensive midfielder. "We can share."

Michonne was a little taken aback by his good looks up close; nevertheless, she shot him a dubious glare, as did his best friend, Shane.

"Listen, blue-eyes," said Michonne. "Your bigmouthed friend here ruined any chance of that."

Rick tilted his head to the side and narrowed his eyes; he stepped closer, "Who are you, again?"

He did want to know who the attractive, no-nonsense girl was.

Michonne rolled her eyes and kneeled down to tighten her shoelace, "Don't worry 'bout who I am..."

There was a chorus of _ooohs_ from the other boys; Rick rolled _his_ eyes.

"I don't have to answer any of your questions, and y'all don't have the right to make us leave," Michonne said, as she straightened up and stood.

Rick felt very intrigued by her; he and Shane shared a look.

"We've got the pitch on Thursdays for training," Rick explained to the pretty girl, not wanting their first meeting to continue to be on a sour note.

"You haven't been here for the past _two_ Thursdays," Michonne said, while gesturing to the field.

"Well, we're here _now_ ," Rick replied, unable to keep his gaze off of her.

"Yeah," said Shane, stepping closer to the girls.

"Back off," Sasha warned, knowing his reputation for being a hot-head.

"I'm not tryin' anything," Shane replied. "I just thought we could come to some kind of _arrangement_."

"I think the fuck not," said Sasha, staring him down.

"Not like that," he answered sincerely. "How about we play each other. Winner gets to use the pitch whenever."

"Hey, Einstein," said Michonne. "You do know we _all_ get to use it whenever we like?"

"Like my buddy said," Shane started. "Who are you, again, _exactly_?"

"She's striker for The Falcons," said Sasha. "And she'll run rings around you _and_ your buddy."

Shane laughed, and Rick smirked; Michonne shot them an unimpressed look.

"I'd like to see that," said Rick, almost unintentionally. He let his eyes roam over her form; she felt flustered under his gaze.

"Anytime, anyplace," Sasha answered, raising her chin; Rick kept his stare fixed on Michonne.

"How about next Thursday?" asked Shane; Rick and Michonne kept their eyes locked on one another.

"Fine by me," Michonne answered.

"Me too," replied Rick.

"Bring your whole team, plus reserves," said Shane. "You're gonna need 'em."

"Whatever," Sasha retorted. "You might wanna bring your mamas so they can patch-up your boos-boos after we kick your sorry asses. Come on, Mich. Let 'em have the pitch. They're gonna need the practice."

Michonne gave Shane a snarky look, before offering Rick a crooked, cocky smile. She and Sasha turned and ambled over to where their bags were. The boys started to do their warm-ups as the girls retrieved their bags, readying themselves to leave. Michonne looked back towards the pitch, and caught Rick staring at her once more. He gave her a small wave; she scoffed and shook her head. She could not wait to see him again in a week's time.

xXxXx

 _Friday_

The hard-to-describe sound of the beanbag, shifting under the weight of a person, was audible as Michonne got comfortable. The grumbling of her tummy was louder; she looked around the quiet library hoping no one had heard it. Just then, over near the far wall, she spotted him: Rick Grimes. She lifted her comic book up closer to her face, and watched him. He was wearing their school's mandatory navy-blue uniform; his hair was neat, though a little unruly in the back. He had his backpack hanging from one shoulder, and a look of concentration on his face.

She continued to watch him as he approached one of the shelves and searched for a book. He was cute, she thought a moment, admiring the way his gait was bowlegged and his frame, slight. He had a handsome face and kind eyes.

Michonne tilted her head and let her eyes roam down to his firm little backside; it too looked cute in those pants. Suddenly, he turned and she had to shift her gaze upwards, causing their eyes to meet. Hurriedly, she looked away and brought her comic book higher. It was too late, he had recognized her.

After considering what he needed to do next, Rick decided to approach Michonne. He did some Googling after he had gotten home from their training session the night before, and realized that she was a big deal in the girls' competition. Though she had not been with The Falcons long, she was a very formidable and capable replacement for Carol Peletier, who had moved not too long ago. He found her interesting, and very pretty.

"Hey," he said, as he stood in front of her; Michonne gazed up at him.

"Hi," she offered, letting her book rest in her lap. "You needed something, or…?"

"No, I just wanted to say hello," he admitted. "I'm Rick."

"I know who you are," she answered. "I've watched a few of your games."

He nodded his head, a little shamefaced that he had not seen her team play at all that season; he was interested in playing soccer, but he did not really make time to see the girls' team play, at least, not lately. Anytime the boys' team did turn up, it was because Shane wanted to hit on the girls' team after their game. That was one of the reasons why there was little solidarity between them; that and the fact that the boys got new kits whenever they wanted, and were generally given more support from the school, as well as more incentives to play. This disparity existed between them, even though the girls were a champion team.

"You're Michonne, right?" he asked, not wanting to admit that he had not seen her in action thus far.

"Yep," she answered, surprised when he sat down beside her on a beanbag.

"I heard you're a star player," he offered.

"When did you hear that?" she asked. "You didn't know that yesterday. You didn't even know who I was. What? Did you Google me, or something?"

Rick scrunched up his face and shook his head.

"Sorry about yesterday," he said, sheepishly.

"Don't be," she answered confidently. "I won't be when we thrash you on Thursday."

He let out an amused laugh.

"You don't think we can?" she challenged. "Is that why you're laughing?"

"Maybe," he replied, before amending what he had said. "I mean, _no_ ; I ain't laughin' at you or your ability. I just find it funny that you're so… _competitive._ "

"Why's that funny?"

"It's not funny- _funny_ ," he offered. "It's, I don't know."

Now she chuckled a little at how flustered he was becoming.

"What I'm tryin' to say is, I came over here to talk to you; to get to know you," he said a little shyly. "And you're talkin' about beatin' my ass."

Michonne laughed, "Okay, I get your point."

They shared a quick, coy smile with one another; it grew quiet between them.

"Whatcha readin'?" he asked, pointing to her comic book.

"Oh, it's just this comic book I brought from home. The selection here is pretty awful," she said, nodding her head. "What're you looking for in here?"

"This book about ancient Greece," he replied, showing her the title of the book scrawled on a scrap of paper.

"You won't find it there," she offered, gesturing to where Rick was just searching. "You need to look in the reference section."

"Ah, okay," he replied. "Thanks for that. Glad you're here, otherwise I might've gotten stuck in this place all day."

"Yeah," she said somewhat contemptuously. "Wouldn't want _that_ to happen."

"Oh, not that's it's a bad thing," he stuttered. "It's probably a really cool place to hang out. I mean, you're here on your own and it's lunchtime, so it can't be that bad."

Michonne just shrugged at Rick before supplying a quiet, "Yeah."

Silence pervaded; Rick's shoelace suddenly became interesting to him as he stared at it. Michonne twiddled her thumbs.

"So," he finally said, grabbing her attention. "Thursday, uh?"

"What about it?'

"Nothin'," he answered. "It's just gonna be _interesting_."

"Why's that?"

"Well, we've never played girls before," he said in a matter-of-fact way.

"Well, we've played a bunch of below-average teams before," she quipped. "So, it's not gonna be that interesting for us."

"Really? You're gonna sit here and call my team shitty to my face?" he asked, half-jokingly.

"Looks that way," she replied, with the hint of a smile on her lips.

Just then, the bell sounded, announcing the end of the lunch break. Michonne stood, placed her comic book back into her bag, and then glanced at Rick. He had gotten to his feet as well. He placed the piece paper back into his pocket, picked up his backpack, and ran his fingers through his hair.

"It was cool to meet you properly, Michonne," he said sincerely.

"Same here," she answered.

"Guess I'll see you around," he said, not moving, even though the other students were filing out of the library.

"Sure," Michonne replied, still standing in place. "I'll see you on Thursday."

"For my scheduled ass-kicking?" he teased, causing her to gift him with the most beautiful smile he had ever seen.

"Yeah," she said, while walking past him and heading for the exit.

"Just remember one thing," he called.

"What's that?" she queried, looking back over her shoulder.

"You don't have to take it easy on me, just because you like me now."

Michonne rolled her eyes and then sneered at his seeming attempt at flirtation.

"Trust me," she said while walking away. "I won't."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Wow! I'm actually surprised by the response to this little Challenge. Thank you for reading and for the faves/follows. I decided to extend this.

Thanks to those who left reviews:

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Also, I love all of my Silent Readers, too. Let's check in!

* * *

 _Saturday_

The warm sun shone down on the group of girls who were congregating at the local park. It was mid-afternoon and the friends, and teammates, were enjoying the leisurely, steady-paced weekend. Michonne and Sasha had finally gotten the chance to tell the remainder of their team, Tara Chambler, Maggie Greene, and Rosita Espinosa, that they had made a wager with the boys' team.

"Are you serious?" asked Tara.

"Umm, yes," Sasha answered. "So serious."

"You should've been there," Michonne added. "They were being such jerks, we had to stand our ground; we had to challenge them."

"You think we can beat them?" asked Maggie.

"Uh, have you seen them play?" Sasha queried.

"Yeah."

"Right, well, they suck," Sasha stated firmly.

"I know, but still," Maggie offered. "They're guys. They're faster than us; stronger than us."

" _Hardly_ ," Michonne snorted. "They don't play as well as we do."

"Yeah, I guess," said Maggie.

"We won't beat 'em with that attitude, Mags," Tara said. "Come on! We can do this."

"Yeah," added Rosita. "We can totally beat them."

"So, we've got less than a week to get ready to take them on?" asked Maggie, finally feeling some of the confidence that her teammates were bathed in.

"That's right," Sasha advised. "So, let's run some extra drills now, and then next week, we bring it!"

All of the girls nodded and agreed; there was a certain feeling of excitement encompassing them in that moment. They agreed to train the following day as well.

 _Sunday_

The vibrating phone sounded loudly against the tabletop; Rick's mother shot him a disapproving glare when he picked it up.

"Not at the breakfast table," she reminded him. "This is family time."

"Yes, ma'am," Rick answered, while placing the device in his pocket. He continued to eat his food, just as a blaring horn sounded in their driveway.

"I think it's Shane," said Rick, giving his parents an apologetic look. "May I be excused?"

"Take some toast with you," his mother said. Rick did as he was told, kissed his mother's cheek, bid his father and brother farewell, and then made his way out to greet his best friend. He finished the toast before he reached Shane's car.

"You're early," said Rick, as he climbed into the front passenger seat. "That's good."

"Why's that good?"

"It means you're takin' this seriously," said Rick.

"Takin' _what_ seriously?" asked Shane, as he flicked through the songs on his playlist.

"The match against The Falcons," Rick reminded him.

"Man, I thought we were just gonna hang out today? I didn't know we were meant to be takin' anything seriously," was Shane's response; Rick rolled his eyes and shook his head in disbelief.

"No," Rick retorted. "Don't you remember? I said we should get the boys together and get some practice sessions in today, at lunchtime. You're early for training. I'm surprised; you never want to go the extra mile."

"Extra training? You living outside your damn mind somethin'? What do we need to do that for?" asked Shane dubiously, with his face scrunched up

"So we can beat them," Rick offered. "So we can beat The Falcons."

" _Please_ ," Shane scoffed. "We're gonna beat 'em anyways."

"Have you seen 'em play, Shane?" Rick queried.

"Sure," he answered. "They're just a bunch of girls."

"They're state champs," Rick reminded him. "And I know I've said it before, but their striker, Michonne, she could _totally_ run rings around me…"

"Right," Shane teased. " _Michonne_ , who you just can't seem to shut up about."

"What?"

"It's _so_ obvious you like her," said Shane. "You've dropped her name _how_ many times now since we made our little bet?"

"She's a star player, Shane," Rick supplied, trying to stop his face from blushing. "We shouldn't underestimate her, or the rest of 'em."

"Yeah, yeah," said Shane, as he started the engine. "You need to make up your mind, though, buddy."

"About what?" asked Rick as he glanced questioningly at his best friend.

"If you want to _impress_ Michonne or _beat_ her team," Shane suggested. "Because I don't think you can do both."

xXxXx

 _Later, on that same Sunday_

After gathering the rest of their team, Rick and Shane stood before them on the school soccer pitch. Although it was just before lunchtime, their squad looked tired.

"We didn't sign up for this," said Eugene Porter, one of their reserve players. "This is in _addition_ to the training we've already agreed to. I don't see the point."

"Listen, benchwarmer," Shane said as he pointed his finger at him. "We're takin' this serious."

"But they're just the girls' team," said Abraham Ford. "Surely y'all don't think they've got a chance at actually _beatin'_ us."

"They're _actually_ pretty good," Glenn Rhee interjected. "State champions."

A few of the other boys rolled their eyes, scoffed, and made doubtful comments.

"Listen up," Rick finally said, causing the team to quieten down. "We're gonna take this serious; we have to. They _are_ state champs…"

"In the girls' comp…"

"Doesn't matter what comp it's in," Rick said, waving his hand to silence his teammate. "They're good, _real_ good. We've gotta be good to beat them. Now, if anyone doesn't wanna practice, I can't force you to, but me and Shane are gonna be out here runnin' drills if you want to stay."

….

"Don't worry about those lazy pricks," said Shane to Rick.

"Yeah," Glenn added. "We'll stay here and practice with you."

"What's the point?" asked Rick. "We don't have a full squad. Hell, there's only three of us."

"We can run sprints; do some kicking drills," Shane suggested; Rick shrugged.

He felt let down by his team. They were being naïve if they thought they did not need to train extra hard to compete against The Falcons. Since Thursday, Rick had been watching clips of their games on the school's website. They were hardworking, and played as a cohesive unit; areas that the Tigers were lacking in. Not only did he want to be able to play a match against The Falcons whereby his team was not embarrassed by a thrashing, but he also wanted Michonne to know that he had really tried. He wanted her to see that he, at least, did not automatically think his team would best hers because they were boys.

Just as Rick was about to tell his friends that he did not feel much like training anymore, movement near the far barrier caught his attention. Approaching the pitch was a group of girls; when his eyes focussed, he saw that it was Michonne and her teammates.

" _Hello_ _ladies_ ," said Shane as he saw what Rick was seeing.

"Great," Rick said under his breath. "Come on, let's go."

"Nah, man," said Shane. "We were here first this time."

"Shane, we literally made them give up the field when it was only two of 'em," Rick reminded his friend.

The girls got close; Michonne and Sasha walked over to where the boys were, but paid them no mind. They let their bags slide from their shoulders and drop to the ground. A few of the other team members began to stretch and run out onto the pitch, passing a ball to one another.

"How's it goin', ladies?" Shane called out; at the same time, Michonne and Sasha turned in his direction and offered him an unimpressed look as they both answered, "Good."

"Hi, Glenn," Maggie said as she waved.

"Hey, Maggie," he replied, blushing.

"Y'all done here?" asked Sasha with raised eyebrows.

"Maybe," said Shane with a smirk. "Maybe we're just warmin' up."

"Whatever," Sasha answered as started stretching. "Might be a good idea if you _did_ hang around. You might learn something."

" _Shit_ ," said Shane, as he flopped down to the grass. "Don't have to tell me twice."

Sasha rolled her eyes and ran out to the field. Michonne finished stretching; when she straightened up, she glanced over to where the boys were. She and Rick shared a look. Glenn sat down next to Shane, but Rick ambled toward Michonne; he gave her a smile.

"Hey," he greeted.

"Hey," she replied. "Were you guys training?"

"Nah," Rick answered truthfully. "The rest o' the boys didn't want to."

"Why not?"

Rick shook his head and shrugged a little; he did not really want to say the reason why, but figured it was better to be honest.

"They didn't think we needed to," he proffered; she gave him a dubious glare.

"Trust me," she supplied, narrowing her eyes. "You need to."

"That's what I said," he admitted; he let out a small chuckle.

"Okay, well, I gotta get out there," said Michonne, even though she did not move.

"Sure."

"Are you staying or…?"

"Yeah, I mean, if that's…you know, if that's okay with you," Rick stammered, as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"I don't own the pitch," she said with a quaint grin. "Stick around, if you want."

With that, Michonne ran out to the field. Rick watched her as she sprinted over, and playfully stole the ball from one of her teammates. They gave chase. She weaved in and out of the other players, passing the ball from her right foot to her left as she moved. She made it look effortless, Rick thought, as she manoeuvred between each defensive player, before making her way closer to the goal; she kicked the ball ahead of herself slightly, planted her left foot, and then swung her right foot. The ball went flying through the air and soon crashed against the net.

Sasha held her hand out for Michonne to smack it, while the other girls cooed at her skills. Rick found himself transfixed by the slender, agile girl. He could not remove his gaze from her; she bent down to tighten her bootlace, and then lifted her head to stare in his direction. Rick's lips turned up at the corner into an easy smile. He felt his heart skip a beat when Michonne beamed brightly, though somewhat coyly, back at him.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading. More to come!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thanks to everyone for reading this little story.

Thanks for the feedback: Jerkchickenz; flacagonzales; rumark24; member00; F4M1LYGR1M3S-610.W4LK3R; atm0000; TheOtherPen; riyaboo12; Trista 3; RBGzMom; courtgirl26; minton131; kendrawriter33; sweettayjax; LALOLI; literaturechick; QTFics; dayjavoo1; kimyso; amazingatships; AndyDanai; Love it; literaturechick ; Llucas0814; officersamurai; and Guests!

* * *

 _Monday_

The loud sounding bell, that signalled lunchtime had come, rang; Rick was not paying attention to what his teacher was saying, instead, he was trying to load all of his textbooks into his arms and make a mad dash to his locker.

"Now, have your parents sign this permission slip, and bring it back in the morning," said the teacher as the pieces of paper were circulated to each impatient student.

After he had scooped up all of his books and pocketed the permission slip, Rick made his way out into the hallway, and down the stairs. As he approached his locker, he saw Shane and Glenn headed in the same direction.

"Man," Shane started, holding the slip in front of Rick's face. "Why do they always plan for these stupid guest speakers in our gym time?'

"It's 'cause they don't think gym is really that important to the curriculum," said Rick in response, as he opened his locker. "So they always cut into gym time."

"That's right," Glenn interjected. "When's the last time they interrupted advanced chem for one of these public service announcement thingies?"

"Dude, I still don't know why you take advanced chem," said Shane as he shook his head.

"I like it, plus it'll look good on my college applications," Glenn offered, straightforwardly.

"Yeah, but how can you stand to be in the classroom with Eugene _and_ play with him on the same team? I can only take him in small doses."

"Why are you so mean?" asked Glenn, scrunching up his face.

Shane just shrugged. Rick rolled his eyes at his friends and their boring conversation; he had bigger, better plans for his lunch hour than to listen to the countless reasons they were dubious of one another. He grabbed an apple from his backpack, as well as a sandwich his mother had made for him, closed the door of his locker, and turned to leave.

"I'll see y'all later," he offered with a wave.

"Hey! Where you think you're goin'?" asked Shane. "It's sloppy joes day today."

"I'm gonna give 'em a miss," said Rick, walking backwards with his food in his hands.

"But you love sloppy joes," said Glenn. "Where _are_ you going?"

"To get some fresh air," said Rick, stopping a moment. "It's a nice day. Thought I'd eat lunch outside…"

"Hold up!" said Shane. "Who is she?"

"What?" asked Rick, his face creased up slightly.

"Who's the girl you're ditching us for?" Glenn elaborated.

"There's no girl," Rick said, albeit untruthfully. He did want to eat outside in hopes of catching a glimpse of a certain striker for a certain rival team.

"It's that Michonne chick, ain't it?" Shane pressed.

"What're you talkin' about?" asked Rick, trying to hide his blushing face.

"You're goin' to sit with her, aren't you?" he accused.

"No," said Rick. "I just want to eat my packed lunch outside in the quad; is that such a crime?"

Shane and Glenn glanced at one another and shared a doubtful look.

"Glenn my boy, I'll go get us some sloppy joes," said Shane. "And you go with this Pinocchio sonofabitch, so he doesn't give us the slip; we'll see what he's really up to."

Rick shook his head, "This is so unnecessary."

"Come on," said Glenn, slapping his hand to Rick's back. "Let's just go along with him, otherwise you'll never hear the end of it."

The two boys laughed, before Rick agreed, "So true. Come on; let's go."

…..

Rick was right about one thing: The weather outside was nice. The sun shone brightly in the clear sky, yet a cool breeze swept by, ensuring that the temperature remained comfortable. Several students, who opted not to dine in the cafeteria, were seated at tables, and on grassy patches, inside the large quadrangle.

Rick and Glenn stepped out into the courtyard, and searched the area for somewhere to sit. Immediately, their eyes fell on the group of girls in the far eastern corner: Michonne, Sasha, Maggie, Rosita, and Olivia. Rick noticed Michonne; Glenn noticed Maggie. Both boys shared a look, each asking the unspoken question: Do we sit with them? Rick spoke first.

"So, Maggie's cute, right?" he asked; Glenn shrugged, but felt his stomach drop at his friend's remark.

"I guess," he answered, nonchalantly. "Never really noticed."

"Liar," said Rick, as he nudged Glenn's shoulder. "We all know you like her."

"What?" Glenn asked.

"Maggie," said Rick. "You like her. So, we should go and sit with them, right? I mean, so you can hang out with Maggie, since we all know you like her."

Before Glenn could answer, Rick was making a beeline for the girls; he had his excuse of helping out his friend with the cute girl he liked. And while that was half the reason he was dragging Glenn over there; the other half was because Michonne was sitting there as well.

"Hey, girls," said Rick with a smile; they each responded to him amicably. "Mind if me and Glenn join y'all?"

"Not at all," said Sasha happily. "Here, Glenn, you can have my spot."

The teen got up from her seat at the round table next to a shy-looking Maggie, and then shifted next to Michonne. Glenn took her place, and Rick just stood there. He did not have anywhere to sit, as all of the six stools were now occupied. Michonne looked up at him, and offered him a smile.

"You can have my seat, Rick," she said somewhat coyly.

"Oh, no," he said, shaking his head. "I couldn't. You keep it."

"No, really," she said. "It's okay. I've already eaten, and I have to go now."

"Where are you goin'?" he asked, looking extremely confused.

"To the library," she answered, while she stood, as if it was common knowledge. "I'm helping Miss Browning today. Like I do every Monday."

"Oh, okay," he replied, not moving from where he was standing. Michonne placed her trash into the receptacle, and gave Rick a quick look.

"Seat's there if you want it," she said, before telling her friends she would see them later.

Rick nodded and offered her a quiet yet disappointed, "Thanks."

…..

"I still can't believe it!" said Shane, as he, Glenn, and Rick walked towards the soccer pitch that afternoon. The three boys were wearing their soccer kits, and passing the ball to one another.

"Me, too," said Glenn, with a large smile.

"I'm happy for you, man," Rick chimed in.

"See, Rick," Shane said. "All you had to do was sit with Michonne at lunchtime, like Glenn did, and you'd have a girlfriend now too."

Rick rolled his eyes at his friend's assessment. It turned out, all Glenn had to do was spend the lunch hour with Maggie, and _she_ asked _him_ out. Rick was truly happy for him, but was annoyed that his own plan with Michonne had backfired. Still, he was not going to bring down the current jovial mood.

"Yeah, yeah," he replied to Shane's teasing; not wanting the attention to be on himself. "Like I said, I'm happy for you, Glenn."

They stepped onto the grounds, and immediately saw all of the Falcons' players on the pitch. Glenn went over to Maggie, while Shane did a bit of showboating for the girls; Rick stood back and scanned the area. Soon, his eyes fell on Michonne. She was talking to a few of her teammates; she was not dressed in her soccer gear, but instead, her school uniform. Rick cursed inwardly; by the looks of it, she was not going to be training that day.

He sighed loudly, but decided he should go and say hello to her, either way. He rearranged his bag on his back, and then jogged over to where she and her friends were congregated.

"Hi, Rick," she said somewhat shyly; her teammates immediately made themselves scarce.

"Hey, Michonne," he replied. "You're not training today?"

She gave him a brief, quizzical stare, before recalling that she was not dressed in sporting attire.

"Nah," she answered. "I have a report due on Friday, and my mom said I need to get it finished before our match against you guys; otherwise, I can't play. So, I'm gonna work on it tonight instead of staying at practice."

"I ain't gonna lie," he said, while shifting the weight from his left leg to his right, and then smiling. "Havin' you as a no-show would be great for us."

She grinned at his compliment, before playfully shoving his arm, "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Kind of," he admitted. "Without you on your team, we might actually have a fightin' chance. But this means a lot to you, so I'd like it if you got to do somethin' that's important to you."

Michonne beamed bashfully at Rick; they both stared at one another a short while, without saying anything. She finally broke the silence.

"Yeah, well, umm," she stammered. "That's really nice of you to say."

"No worries," Rick answered.

"I should, uh, I should get goin'," she offered, though she still stood in place.

"Yeah, of course," he replied, running his fingers through his curls. "Sorry for keepin' you here."

"It's okay," she remarked, still not moving.

The pair shared another smile, and a little nervous chortle. Rick fumbled with the strap on his bag; Michonne wrung her hands together. Both looking as if they wanted to prolong the moment. Suddenly, the boy had a bright idea. He was going to take some initiative, like he had intended to at lunchtime. He was not going to miss another opportunity to spend some time with Michonne. He swallowed hard, took a deep, yet discreet breath, and then asked, "Can I walk you home?"

* * *

A/N: Will Michonne say yes to Rick's offer? More to come!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Sorry for the long wait. Thanks for the reviews, and for reading. I hope you're enjoying the pace. I just want to take this slowly, and let them discover each other as time floats by. This story is so much fun to write. Sorry it has been a while. There was a death in my family, and writing has been hard because I am sad and tired a lot of the time. Okay. We are picking up where we left off.

* * *

 _Monday_

"Can I walk you home?"

The words were quiet, even, and tinged with hopefulness. His hands grew clammy, and he realized that standing on the open pitch left him exposed; there was nowhere to run and hide if, for whatever reason, Michonne declined his offer. Rick immediately felt his stomach begin to do little cartwheels as he awaited her reply.

He stared into her pretty, brown eyes, which went wide with surprise, before taking on a look of slight confusion. She knit her brow.

"Now?" she asked. "You wanna walk me home _right_ _now_?"

Rick began to panic; she answered his question with a question of her own. He nervously ran his fingers through the hair at the back of his head, his eyes dipping to the ground a moment, before returning to hold her gaze. He placed his hands inside of his pockets, and offered her a soft, "Yeah. I mean, if you wanted to."

After her surprise had passed, a small smile crept over Michonne's lips.

"Okay, sure," she answered. "I'd like that."

Rick exhaled loudly, before he beamed at her. Relief and excitement washed over him, as he replied, "Great! I'll just go and tell my friends I'm leavin'; I'll be right back."

He sprinted over to where Shane was pretending to do stretches with some of The Falcons. The girls were not nearly as impressed with his moves as he thought they would be. He stopped his movements when he saw his friend approach.

"Hey, I'm gonna take off," said Rick quickly, before backing away.

"What? Why?" asked Shane. "It was your idea for us to have extra training, but now you wanna ditch us? Where you goin', boy?"

Rick did not stop, but instead, shot his friend a wide grin and said, "I'm walkin' Michonne home."

…..

The journey to get Michonne home started off a little embarrassingly for Rick. This was due to the fact that Shane insisted on wolf whistling to get their attention, calling out something about not doing anything he would do, and then proceeding to twerk as best he could. Rick was mortified, as his face turned bright red.

"Sorry about him," said Rick. "He ain't got no manners."

"He's sure different from you," she said, with a small smile. "I get why you and Glenn hang out, you're both sweet; Shane's kind of _obnoxious_."

Rick laughed a little before offering, "Yeah, I know. We've been friends for ages. From the same neighborhood. Went to the same schools."

"So he's not so bad, then?" asked Michonne, feeling a little bad for her assessment.

"Oh, yeah," said Rick. "He _is_ that bad. The worst, actually."

Michonne burst into laughter at his joking, and Rick suddenly forgot what he was saying. She sounded perfectly sweet, and he felt his stomach flutter. An easy silence permeated between the pair; Michonne still wore a little smirk as they sauntered along to the end of the field, and made their way up a narrow path that led out of the Academy grounds.

Rick followed behind Michonne as she turned to the right, and kept walking. He fell into step beside her again, discreetly checking her out as they strolled.

"So, Glenn and Maggie," he started, not sure of what else to talk about. "Didn't think that was gonna happen today, right?"

"I know!" said Michonne excitedly, as she faced Rick and grabbed his arm; he was hyperaware of her touch, whereas she just seemed only to be expressing her enthusiasm at the news of their friends dating. "I was in the library, and then Sasha sent me a text. I didn't believe her, but Maggie's had a crush on Glenn for a while now."

"Really?" asked Rick.

"Yeah," Michonne replied. "He's all she talked about; I was gettin' sick of hearing Glenn this and Glenn that."

They both shared a chuckle, before Rick said, "I'm surprised she asked him out."

"You know girls can ask guys out, right?" Michonne queried, somewhat teasingly.

"I know," he reassured her. "I just meant, I was surprised because I didn't think she liked him like that or anything. Not that I'm up-to-date with all the gossip and crushes that go on around here. I mind my own business."

"Same here," Michonne offered, as she glanced over at Rick; he was very cute. She thoroughly enjoyed the way his dark curls framed his handsome face. She was drawn from her musings on his attractiveness by his soft, almost shy question.

"Have you ever, ya know, asked a guy out first?" he regretted it as soon as the words slipped from his mouth. That was too personal a question, he felt. He took in her expression to gauge how she received it.

Michonne felt her face flush warm at his question; she peered sideways at him. She did not want to admit she'd never actually dated anyone before. She said nothing in response, and Rick noticed that she seemed slightly uncomfortable.

"You don't have to answer that," he supplied. "That's personal. You don't know me like that. Sorry for bein' out of line."

She gave him an appreciative beam and nodded her head, before saying, "Thanks."

They continued to walk a short while in silence, glancing over at one another intermittently until, finally, Rick asked where exactly she lived.

"It's not too far, now," Michonne replied to his query. "Just on Wilk Avenue."

"That's literally around the corner and up the street from me," he said, somewhat excitedly. "I didn't realize you lived so close. How long have you been here for?"

"A few months now," she answered.

"Was it hard moving?" asked Rick, intrigued by the girl beside him.

"Yeah," she admitted. "Having to leave all of my friends behind was hard. It's scary, coming to a new school and, ya know, having to start all over again."

Rick nodded his head, and said, "Well, from what I can tell, you've done pretty well. You're on a kickass team; you've made friends. That's really cool. I'm happy for you."

"Thanks," she said with a smile. "Everyone here has been nice. Even _you_ ended up being nice after being a total jerk."

"Hey," said Rick, pretending to be offended, as he pressed his hand to his chest. "I wasn't a total jerk, I was…nah, never mind; you're right. I was a jerk, and I'm sorry."

He kept his hand over his heart and shot her a pitiful look with puppy dog eyes, which she found to be completely adorable.

"Apology accepted… _again,_ " she offered. "I'm glad we're getting to know one another."

Now Rick smiled, "Yeah," he remarked. "Me too."

…..

The Harris residence was a quaintly charming red brick home. It was surrounded by dark green pickets set atop a matching brick fence that stood low to the ground. The garden was tidy, with brightly colored flowers lining the paved path that led up to the porch. Rick and Michonne sat on the front step and drank from their respective juice boxes; she was not allowed to have boys inside of the house when her parents were not home. Rick was the first boy she had brought back to their home.

She felt a blush cover her cheeks when she explained the rule to him; he was understanding, and accepted her offer of an afterschool snack. He tipped the bag up, and poured the crumbs of the potato chips into his mouth, before washing it down with more apple juice.

"Do you usually have to wait long for your mom and dad?" he queried, noticing that the hour was getting late and afternoon was turning into evening.

"Sometimes," said Michonne. "Dad works shifts at the hospital, and Mom sometimes stays back late to mark papers."

"Well, I don't have to rush off," said Rick. "I can stay with you, if you like."

"Okay," Michonne said with a smile. "So long as you don't mind waiting out here."

"It's cool," he replied. "I don't mind at all."

…..

Time passed at a leisurely pace as the two teens made easy conversation on the front step. They spoke about a number of different things. Rick took note that Michonne was shy, at first, when they were conversing about anything other than soccer, so he led the conversation. Yet after a while, slowly but surely, she began to open up to him.

"So," said Rick. "What do you like doin' when you're not playin' soccer?"

"I don't know," she replied. "Lots of things, really. I like listening to music; I play piano a little."

"That's so cool," Rick offered. "I wish I could play an instrument. What kind of music do you play?"

"Classical, mainly," she said. "But I like all kinds of music."

"What're you listening to at the moment?" he asked.

"Mostly Janelle Monáe," said Michonne. "I'm obsessed."

"I don't know if I've heard her stuff," Rick admitted.

"She's really cool," Michonne proclaimed. "What about you?"

Rick smiled at her attempt to learn about him.

"What music I like? Or what I like to do?" he asked for clarification.

"Everything," she answered, a small grin playing on her lips.

"I'm boring," said Rick. "I ain't talented like you."

Michonne shook her head disbelievingly, before nudging his shoulder and saying, "Whatever."

They shared a smile, and then Rick continued, "I like to hang out with the guys a bit; Glenn's pretty cool, and Shane's a laugh. I like sports. When I'm not playing soccer, I like the outdoorsy-type stuff. Ya know, going hunting, fishin', camping."

"I've never done any of those things before," she admitted.

"Really?" Rick asked.

"I don't really like being outside much unless I have to," she said in response. "Sure, I really love soccer, but other than that, and training, I don't do many outdoors activities."

"So you'd rather spend time indoors reading?" asked Rick.

"Yeah," said Michonne. "That's why I volunteer at the library, and spend some lunchtimes there."

"That's cool, too," he said; Michonne nodded. There was a lull in their conversation, so Rick decided to share a little more about himself.

"I've done some competitive shooting," said Rick proudly.

"Wow," said Michonne, impressed by this newfound information; not that shooting interested her, per se, but his competitiveness was intriguing. "What's that all about?"

"Skeet shooting," he explained. "It's a sport. You know, with the clay pigeons?"

"Oh, yeah," she replied. "Like at the Olympics."

Rick nodded his head, "Yeah. That's it. My Uncle got me into it; I've entered a few tournaments."

"That's really cool," said Michonne, in earnest. "You're good at it?"

"I'm okay," he replied.

"Yeah, right," she offered. "I bet you're better than okay."

"Maybe," he answered coyly. "Not a star like you."

"Shush," said Michonne, with her face growing warm, as she nudged his shoulder with hers once more.

"You are," said Rick admiringly. "You're the best player on your team. You're the hardest worker."

She remained silent, unable to stop grinning at his compliments.

"I have to work hard," she finally offered. "I want to play for Michigan State."

"Yeah?" he asked, not at all surprised by her ambitiousness.

"Yeah," she replied. "Their Elite Prospects Program is open soon; I want to get a place."

"You will for sure," said Rick as he took in the expression on her face; he could tell she really loved playing soccer. It was important to her. "You're great."

"I didn't make selection last season," she said, averting her eyes.

"What?" he asked, wearing a dubious stare. "That's hard to believe."

"It's competitive," she offered.

"Yeah, well, so are you," Rick replied. "And that's a good thing. They'd be lucky to have you. You're the best."

Michonne looked up at the boy sitting beside her, and gave him a sweet smile.

"Thanks," she said softly.

"Don't mention it," he said in response, as they shared a quick grin, and then stared into each other's eyes.

It seemed as if minutes had passed. The depths of her dark brown irises, fringed by long lashes, and twinkling brightly, captivated Rick. He let his gaze travel over her attractive features a moment, and lost his train of thought. His stare fell to her lips before he was drawn from his reverie by her sweet cadence calling his name.

"Rick?"

"Uh?"

"You all right?" she asked, slightly concerned by his sudden quietness.

He shook his head a little, as if to order his thoughts with the action.

"Sorry," he offered. "Yep. All good."

"Lost you for a minute, there," she chortled.

"Yeah, I was just…I was, umm… _Wow_ ," he said softly. "Your eyes."

Just then, something shifted. An indescribable awareness drifted between the pair in that instant. They each felt the pull, the attraction, even if they did not understand fully what it meant; they both felt the overwhelming sense of refuge in one another.

"What about them?" Michonne asked, somewhat tentatively, as she steadied her breathing, and a fluttering in her stomach set in. She raised her eyebrows, and blinked rapidly a moment before biting her bottom lip.

"They're just _amazing_ ," said Rick, not worrying about being bashful with her anymore. His own somersaulting tummy was overawed by the quick, loud beating of his heart, as he offered earnestly, "You're so pretty."

Michonne could not help but smile, as she dipped her eyes shyly, and murmured, "Thanks."

He let his own gaze descend to paved footpath that led to the front steps, before he spoke bravely and sincerely, "I…I like you, Michonne. I really, _really_ like you."


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Sorry for the wait. Thanks so much for the reviews and follows. You're all amazing. Special shout-out to EveAlacran for pushing me to finish my update – check out her Richonne stories here as well.

* * *

"I really, _really_ like you."

The words floated around Michonne's head and caused her to feel giddy and her heart to skip a beat as she let it sink in. Rick liked her. He _really_ liked her. Her face grew warm and her smile grew wider as she glanced at him. His eyes were soft and sincere, a small grin playing on his features as he waited for her to respond.

"Th-thanks," she said, barely above a whisper. "I really like you, too."

The pair of teens let out relieved chuckles, and averted their gaze from one another. A comfortable silence fell over them as the stole quick glances of each other.

"So," said Rick, not wanting the moment to be lost because of their lack of experience. "What're we gonna do about it?"

"About you liking me, and me liking you?" she asked a little coyly.

"Yeah," he replied, failing to hide his smile.

"I'm not forfeiting the game just because I like you," she said quickly, somewhat seriously.

"What? Of course not," he replied. "I wouldn't even _think_ about askin' you to do that."

"I know; that's not like you," she admitted, nudging his shoulder with hers. "But is there anything at all that you _would_ think about asking me?"

He shot her a grin, and then bit his lip while he pretended to think really hard about her question. There was so much he wanted to say in that moment. His mind was swimming with the possibilities that this new admission would allow. He took a deep, albeit discreet breath and then offered her another smile.

"Can I have your number?" he finally asked, while giving her a hopeful look.

"Yes," she replied cheerily, wearing a coy smile. She held out her hand, and he placed his phone in her palm. Michonne typed her number in to Rick's contacts, and saved her name. She returned the device to its owner and offered him another smile.

"Did you want my number?" he asked.

"Not right now," she answered. "I'll get it when you text me later."

"Okay," he replied.

The teens gazed happily at one another and let the comfortable quietness settle between them as Michonne's father pulled into the driveway. They each stood, and she fidgeted with her hands; Rick's eyes made their way back to the paving of the garden path again.

"Hey, Daddy," said Michonne in greeting.

"Hi, baby," Mr. Harris replied to his daughter. "We have a guest?"

"Yes, umm, this is my friend Rick," she stammered. "From school. He walked me home and waited."

Mr. Harris waited for the teen to lift his head before he stepped forward.

"Hello, Rick," he said, extending his hand.

Rick met his gaze and shook his hand firmly, before saying, "Hello, Mr. Harris."

"Thanks for walking my girl home," he offered in earnest.

"You're welcome, sir," said Rick. "Anytime."

The three of them then stood for a moment in awkward silence. Rick placed his hands in his pocket; Michonne chewed her thumbnail, while her father cleared his throat.

"So, I'll see you tomorrow?" she finally asked.

"Yeah," replied Rick. "I'll see you then."

…..

Michonne had finished her homework, and was completing her nightly routine of getting ready for bed. After she had brushed and flossed her teeth, she made her way back to her room. After settling under her covers, she reached for her mobile, and then turned off her bedside lamp. She scrolled through her messages until she found one from an unknown sender. She smiled upon opening it and realizing it was from Rick.

 _I had fun today. Thanks for the snacks & for letting me walk u home. It was a lot of fun, _it read, followed by, _It's Rick btw._

She giggled at his adorableness, and then replied, _I figured it was you. I had fun too. WYD?_

 _That's good,_ he replied right away. _I'm just watching TV & texting u. What's going on?_

 _Just getting ready for bed and texting you,_ she replied. _My dad was asking a lotta questions bout you._

 _Really? What did he say?_ asked Rick. _Am I in trouble?! Did I get you in trouble?_

Michonne chuckled and then replied, _No silly. Nothing like that. He just wanted to know how I knew you and who you were and stuff like that. Then my mom started asking about you lol_

 _Omg what did she say?!_ was his response.

 _Pretty much the same as dad. But she wanted to kno if I followed the rules. Told her I did. I'm not in trouble,_ Michonne reassured Rick.

 _Good,_ he answered. _This rule eh? Do they ever let u bend it?_

 _Umm, I don't know._

 _Why not?_ he queried.

 _Cuz I've never really had a boy come over before_ , she admitted.

 _For real?_

 _Yep_ , she replied.

 _So I'm ur first?_

 _Pretty much,_ said Michonne. Her face flushed warm at his use of words and she did not fully know why.

 _That's good,_ he offered. _I feel special._

 _You are special_ , she said. _And I'm lame._

 _No way!111!1! Ur great._

 _Thanks :) so are you._

Rick smiled to himself, got up from his spot on the couch and bid his family goodnight. He went to the bathroom and started brushing his teeth; he took a quick mirror selfie and sent it to Michonne. She studied his face, finding his toothpaste-covered grin to be adorable.

 _You're cute,_ she typed and then sent.

 _Not as cute as u,_ he replied, causing Michonne's tummy to fill with butterflies. Her face actually hurt from smiling.

 _Awwww_ , she wrote. _You're the sweetest. Did you finish watching tv?_

 _Not as sweet as u,_ he flirted. _& yeah. In bed now._

 _Are you sleepy?_

 _Nope,_ he answered truthfully. _Wide awake. Happy to be talkin to u. Am I keeping u awake? I could leave u alone if u want…._

 _Not at all,_ she replied with haste. _I really like talking to you._

 _Good,_ he said, as he got comfortable under his sheets. _Cuz like I told u today, I really like u._

 _Same,_ she offered happily, before taking a deep breath and calming her nerves. _Did you wanna hang out tomorrow?_

 _Hell yes! I'd love that,_ Rick replied instantly. _When? Where? U tell me and I'll be there._

 _Ummmmmmmmmmm lunch time?_ she sent tentatively.

 _Ok I can do that,_ Rick typed excitedly. _Lunch time is good. Let's hang out then._

 _Cool,_ said Michonne. _I'll see you then._

Rick let out a pleased little chortle, and then replied, _Yes u will x_

A/N: Next instalment will be Tuesday, another day closer to their soccer match.


End file.
